Improvement in velocipedes



Patented Feb. 2, 1869.

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N FETERS, FHOTO-LITMDGRAPMER, WASHINGTON. D C.

J- BECK. e

Velocipede,l

-2 Sheets-Sheet `2,

Ne. 86,495. Patented Feb. 2, .1869.

ve-PD i A K a@ bell-crank levers B.

UNITED STATES PATENT Eineno JOsErH E'EOK, OE NEW YORK, N.

IMPROVEMENT IN VELOCIPEDES.

Specification i'orning part of Letters Patent No. @eL/M55, dated February 2, 1869.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, JosErH BECK, ol" the city, county, and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Velocipedes; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description thereof, which will enable those skilled in the art to inake and use the saine,'reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, in which drawings- Figure l represents a front view of this invention. Fig.. 2 is a plan or top View thereof. Fig. 3 is a side elevation thereof.

Similar letters indicate corresponding parts.

This invention relates to a velocipede coinposed of two wheels running side by side, and having a seat suspended between them at a point below the center line of the axles in such a manner that said seat forins a irin and steady support for the person occupying the saine, and that no peculiar skill or practice is required to operate the two-wheeled velocipede. The i'raine supporting the seat is composed of two bell-crank levers the vertical arms 4of which are connected by a traverse, on which rests the seat, while their horizontal arms form the bearings for the driving-shafts, on which are mount ed the hand-cranks and pinions gearing into toothed rims attached tothe spokes of the wheels, and said bell-crank levers have their I'ulcra on pivots which forni the axles of the wheels in such a manner that by the weight of the person occupying the seat the driving` shafts and cranks are retained in the proper position, and the velocipede can be propelled with ease and facility. rlhe hand-cranks on the drivingshaft can be worked independent of each other for the purpose of turning the velocipede in any desired direction; or they can be coupled together by asleeve and worked conjointly when the velocipede is to be run in a straight line. The cranks on the drivingshaft are also connected with foot-levers or treadles, which are made in the forni of springlevers,whereby the operation of the velocipede is facilitated.

A A represent two wheels, which run on axles c, formed by pivots which project from the coiniecting-points of the two arins b c oi' The vertical arms c of these bell-crank levers are connected by a traverse, C, to the bottoni surface of which is secured i a U-shaped hanger, D, as clearly shown in Fig. l of the drawings. W

E is the seat, which is provided withastein, d, that passes through holes in the traverse and in the bottoni of the hanger D, and rests upon a spring, c', so that it forins a convenient support for the person occupying the saine. By this arrangement the center of gravity of the person occupying the seat is thrown below the centerline ofthe aXles of the wheels, and a two-wheeled velocipede is obtained which has its wheels arranged side by side, and which can be readily operated by any person without previous practice and without the least danger of upsetting.

The horizontal arnis Z) of the bell-crank le.- vers B forni the bearings for the drivingshafts c, 'each of which carries on its outer endapinion, f, and on its inner end a crank, g. The pinions j' gear into toothed rinis h, secured to the wheels A, and the cranks g are provided with wrist-pins fr?, to which are irlnly secured the hand-cranksy1 The handles of these handcranks extend toward each otherin front ofthe seat, so that they can be conveniently reached bythe person occupying the seat, and by turning the cranks the wheels A are caused to revolve and the velocipede is propelled. The hand-cranks y' are so arranged that they can be operatedindependent of each other; or they can be coupled together by means of a sleeve, k, which is fitted on one of the handles, and can be made to catch over the other at the pleasure of the operator. If the hand-cranks are coupled together or worked conj ointly at the same speed, the velocipede is propelled in a straight line; but by working said cranks independent of each other and turning one faster than the other, the velocipede can be inade to run on a curve; or by turning one crank forward and the other backward, the velocipede can be turned around on its own center. rlhe wrist-pins i of the cranks g connect by rods Z with loot-levers or treadles m,

which are niade inthe forni of springs, andattached to the foot-board a, which is attached to the hanger D. Each of the treadles is provided with a foot-rest, o, and by nieans of these treadles the velocipede can be propelled by the action ofthe feet, or, if desired, foot and hand power can be applied simultaneously. By making the treadles in the form of spring-levers, their operation is materially facilitated.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The two-Wheeled veloeipede having its wheels A A, provided with pinions and placed side by side, hung on separate erankV-axleaand the seatE suspended between them, below the center line of their axles and on the extension thereof, the whole arranged substantially as seat, and provided with projecting pins formv operating substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

4. The-spring-'treadles m, in combination Withlever Z, the cranks g, pinions f, and wheels A, all as shown and described.

This specification signed by me this 6th day of January, 1869. JOSEPH BECK.

. Witnesses: W. HAUFF, E. F. KASTENHUBER. 

